Living in the Overflow

We are living in a challenging time. People are losing hope and feeling discouraged. However, God’s plan for our lives is to live in the overflow. The overflow is a display of His power and love for us to do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we could ask or think.

Get ready because the overflow is coming. You will experience an excess of wisdom, favor, relationships, talents, promotion, and resources. Whatever the circumstances, God's plan is to bring you to a place of plenty. He wants you to have an abundance of peace, joy, and resources. Here is the key: He wants you to overflow with His blessings so that you can be a blessing to the world.

Sam was born in 1918 to parents who were farmers. The family was poor and witnessed the Great Depression. The young boy did many chores to help his parents make ends meet. He milked their cow, bottled up the surplus, and delivered the fresh milk to customers. Sam also delivered newspapers and sold magazine subscriptions to make ends meet. After completing high school, he attended college but worked various jobs during that time, including waiting tables in exchange for meals. After graduation, Sam joined the US Army during World War II. When he returned, he managed a variety store at the age of 26. He took a loan in order to buy his first store and developed crucial business concepts that would later become the key to his success. His store offered lower prices and better-stocked shelves than any of his competitors. Soon he opened a second store. Within three years, his sales volume grew to $225,000. Sam went through much trial and testing, before he opened the first Wal-Mart in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1962. Forbes named Sam Walton the richest man in America from 1982 to 1988. In 1992, at the time of his death, he owned 1,960 Wal-Mart stores and employed 380,000 people, generating $50 billion in annual revenue. He served as an elder and Sunday school teacher at his local church. He also generously supported various charitable causes.

When you honor God, He will repay you for your faithfulness. Like with Sam, God has already designed overflow with you in mind. He has lined up the right people, promotions, good breaks, increase, influence, and favor for you. God is going to cause you to stand out, break barriers, and go further than anyone in your family.

You may feel down today. Perhaps you lost your job without savings in hand. God is still on the throne. Heaven’s economy knows no lack, struggle, or shortage. God has promised to meet all your needs according to His riches. You will overflow to the point of bursting at the seams and spilling over. God wants to make you an example of His goodness. Because the goodness of God leads people to repentance.

The Scripture tells us that Isaac, Abraham’s son, lived in a foreign country that was going through a famine. God told him, “Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. Through your descendants all the nations of the world will be blessed.” Despite the famine, Isaac planted crops, and in the same year, reaped a hundredfold because God blessed him. It sounds like the time we are living in, does it not? Many of us are going through challenges and trying to make ends meet. Let me encourage you that if you stay in faith, praise God in the storm, and thank Him in advance, you will see miraculous provisions. Do not worry about how the economy, Wall Street, or the job market are doing. Remember that God is your source and knows exactly how to bless you! Since the beginning of the year, I called 2020 a blockbuster year for those who believe. I believe that it will be even more miraculous despite the current situation because God will get all the glory! The Bible tells us that Isaac became rich and his wealth continued to grow. The Philistines envied him because of all the flocks, herds, and servants that he had. When you honor God, His blessings will chase you down. You do not have to look for the blessing, the blessing will find you.

During the current stay-at-home order, a friend and ministry partner of mine lost his job. Since last year, his place of employment had been cutting corners. His salary was cut in half. Remarkably, my friend did not panic; instead, he prayed and thanked God for provision and a new job opportunity. Just two days later, on a Thursday, he received a call for an interview the next day. He had an interview that Friday and was hired on the spot. Now his salary is now twice as much as it was before. In addition, he can buy stocks in a publicly traded company.

Friend, God knows how to take you from barely making it to a place of overflow. He wants to give you an abundance of peace, joy, health, and resources. His heart is to bless you so that you can become a blessing to the whole world. Let us declare this confession of faith out loud with me: “My God will supply all my needs. I am living in the overflow. I have a surplus of everything good in my life. I have more than enough. I am furnished in abundance. My storehouses are full and overflowing. My cup is running over. I am overflowing with God’s favor. I will lend and not borrow. I am blessed to be a blessing.”

“May every one of you overflow with the grace and favor of our LORD Jesus Christ” (Philippians 4:23 (TPT).  
 
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Connect with the Right People

We can only go so far in life on our own. When we connect with people who are more talented, successful, and further along, their influence is going to flow down to us. You will witness increase and promotion because of association.

C.S. Lewis said, "The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are." You should be connected to people who inspire, encourage, and empower you. They will challenge you and help you become a better version of you.

Did you know that Thomas Edison, Harry Firestone, and Henry Ford all had summer homes next door to one another in Florida? They were close friends and would spend much of their time together. Notice that they did not associate with just anyone. They hung out with other dreamers and visionaries. Is it any surprise that they inspired others, invented things, and became history makers?

God has some power-associations in store for you too! However, they will not simply waltz into your life. You must actively search for them. When you associate with someone who is favored by God, take the time to learn from them, sow into them, and speak into their lives. The more blessed they are, the more blessed you will become. 

The people we spend our time with have tremendous influence in our lives. When we choose our friends wisely, we begin to see growth in ourselves, our families, our businesses, and our careers. It is alright to help those who are in need, but if they become our only friends then we can quickly stifle our own growth. 

The Bible says that Daniel had an excellent spirit. When you study his life, you discover that he had excellent friends. Three of them were Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They refused to bow down before the king's golden idol. Is it any wonder that Daniel was a person of excellence? His teenage friends had integrity, courage, big dreams, and would not compromise. We do not have to have a “better than you” attitude but we can choose friends who challenge us to go higher. 

As a minister, I meet many kinds of people and I am a friend to all. Nevertheless, I choose my inner circle very carefully. I pay attention to how people think, how they treat others, and how they act. If their words are negative, critical, or judgmental, I avoid them. I stay away from people who are all talk but no action. I minister to them, but I limit the time I spend with them. 

I have also learned about the balance of giving. Don’t become so busy serving others that you neglect to cultivate the relationships that will carry you. Don’t sacrifice your own happiness, trying to keep everybody else happy.  

Make sure that you have people in your life that you can rely on! God has friends lined up for you that do not need anything from you. They are stronger, smarter, more influential, and more experienced than you. You do not have to inspire them, they will inspire you. They will lift you up when you are feeling down. They will invite you to dinner. They will even introduce you to their connections. 

If you want to see increase, you must be generous with your time, energy, and resources. Honor those who have what you want. The anointing you respect is the anointing you will attract. On the other hand, you will never have what you constantly criticize. 

Friend, God is the greatest Force and Source in the universe. When you give God first place in your life, you will become the ultimate success. Your alignment is more important than your assignment! Like Edison, Firestone, and Ford, surround yourself with the right people. Successful people find themselves in the company of other successful people. Victorious people associate with other victorious people. Happy people hang around other happy people. 

This year, I encourage you to evaluate your friendships on a regular basis. Seek out people of excellence who are bigger, better, and brighter than you. God is poised to expose you to new heights. Make room for the new relationships that He has in store for you. Seek out people who think bigger, dream bigger, and believe bigger than you. God has already lined up the right relationships to advance you. Connect with the right people and you will increase by association! 

“Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get in trouble” (Proverbs 13:20 NLT).

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